Pork Burgers with Fried Brussels Sprouts

So, I graduated.  Officially graduated from culinary school.  I now have a degree in Culinary Arts.  Pretty freakin' awesome.

How did we celebrate?  Well, thanks to a fantastic gift card from my parents, we now are the proud owners of a meat grinder attachment to our KitchenAid (as well as a pretty awesome juicer - Andy's been on this homemade juice kick - and I gotta tell ya, I'm loving the fresh juice combos he's coming up with!).

So the first thing I did?  Went out and bought some pork sausage casings and ground up some sweet pork sausages.  Let me tell you - without an actual sausage stuffer attachment for our KitchenAid or an actual manual sausage stuffer - it's pretty time consuming to stuff some sausages.  I ended up MacGuyver-ing my way through with a pastry bag fitted with a large tip and ended up with decent results - although I'd much rather dish out the $12 for the sausage stuffer attachment for next time.

Anyway, as I got tired of manually stuffing sausages, I didn't end up going through all of the ground pork I had.  With the rest of it, I made these pretty sweet burgers.  So good.  And yeah, I definitely don't plan on buying ground meat ever again (well, let's keep it real, maybe once in a blue moon... or if Andy goes grocery shopping and ends up bringing it home).  But seriously, freshly ground meat is definitely more superior than the grocery stuff!

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground pork (I had about a 70/30 ratio of meat to fat)
salt and pepper, to taste
Mayo, optional
pepperjack cheese, optional
fried egg, optional
burger buns, or sandwich bread in my case

Fried Brussels Sprouts:

1 lb. brussels sprouts, quartered and blanched
1 cup flour
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon salt
1/2 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon oregano
oil, for frying

You of course could season your ground meat with whatever you fancy, but I like to keep it simple with just a bit of salt and pepper.  I like dressing up a burger as a whole, rather than trying to really flavor the meat.  Because well... the meat speaks for itself.  Right?  Right.

Anyway, form the meat into thin 4 ounce patties.  Think Steak N' Shake burger style. 

Heat a large saute pan under medium high heat and add a little bit of oil to coat the pan.  Place two patties in the pan and cook until starting to brown.  Flip over and place cheese (if using) on top of each patty.  Continue to cook until the patty is cooked through and the cheese is melted.  Place one patty on top of the other and transfer to a plate to rest.  At this point, you can assemble all of your burger toppings, and you can really be as creative as you want here.   But I had some extra brussels sprouts in the fridge and needed to use them up, so why not fry them, right?

Heat oil or deep fryer to 325 F.

Combine the flour, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, cayenne pepper, and oregano.  Mix well.  Dredge the brussels sprouts in the seasoned flour and dust off any excess.

Place in deep fryer and cook until golden brown and crisp, about 2-4 minutes.  Drain on paper towel-lined plate and season with salt and pepper, to taste.

To assemble this awesome burger, toast some burger buns lightly (or use sandwich bread like I did - I had everything else on hand and I was too lazy to leave the house to get some burger buns).  Get a good smear of mayo on both pieces of bread.  Top the bottom bun with the two burger patties.  Then place a good amount of the fried brussels sprouts on top of the burger and top with a fried egg - good and yolky!  Then close is on up with the top of the bun.

And there you have a pretty darn good burger.  Different, but oh so delicious.

What's your favorite burger combo?!

Pork Tenderloin w/ Orange-White Wine Marinade

1 more week to go and I'll be a culinary school graduate! 

A lot of people ask me what I'll do next, and honestly, I look at them strangely.  I work in my field already.  I technically work at two prominent restaurants in town under two very amazing chefs.  I plan on continuing to at least work for one of them.  I originally thought we'd move out of town to somewhere warmer or whatnot, but it looks like we'll be staying put in Kentucky for a little while.

We've begun the process of searching for a house to buy and put it an application for pre-approval on a mortgage loan.  It's scary and stressful, but oh so exciting at the same time.  So here's to crossing our fingers that all goes our way!

This was a pretty easy dish that I basically made up to get rid of a bunch of stuff we had lying around.  Feel free to improvise based on what you have!

Ingredients:

1 cup white wine
1/2 cup champagne vinegar
1/4 cup orange juice
4 tablespoons olive oil
3-4 garlic cloves,crushed
1/2 cup sliced carrots
1/2 cup sliced onions
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
1 bay leaf
4-5 fresh thyme sprigs
salt and pepper, to taste
1 lb. pork tenderloin
2 tablespoons olive oil 
1 cup chicken stock
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

In a medium bowl, combine the wine, vinegar, orange juice, olive oil, garlic, carrots, onions, peppercorns, bay leaf, and thyme sprigs.  Mix well and reserve about 1/4 cup in a separate bowl.

Place tenderloin in a deep pan and pour marinade over top.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, up to one day.

Preheat oven to 425 F.

Remove tenderloin from marinade and pat dry.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Heat olive oil in a large oven-proof pan under medium high heat.  Add tenderloin and sear until golden brown on all sides.

Transfer pan to the oven and cook until medium, medium well - about 15 minutes, depending on the thickness of your tenderloin.

While the tenderloin is cooking, you can prepare your sauce.  In a small saucepan, add the reserved marinade  and chicken stock.  Reduce mixture until only 1/4 cup remains.  Mount sauce with the butter and season with salt and pepper, to taste. 

Let tenderloin rest for at least 5 minutes before slicing.  Slice into 1/2-3/4 inch thick slices.  Place over top sauteed vegetables and top with sauce.

 

Easy peasy dinner ready in a flash!

See you guys next week!

Pork au Poivre w/ Spaghetti Noodles

Okay, I promise this will be the last of the pork posts!  I know it seems like we've been eating a lot of it, but we've been trying to eat frugally and with what we have.  Which means pork is cheap and we've been trying to use up what's been in our pantry because it's way too cluttered!

This one is fairly simple, and quick - think less than 30 minutes!  Which is always good for a weeknight, right?  The only thing I maybe would have done differently is to use different peppercorns.  I used black and they just seemed to overpower the pork a little.  Maybe next time I'll use a younger peppercorn (green) or a pink peppercorn (which really isn't a peppercorn, but a dried berry).  Either way, the sauce was delicious and the noodles gave the dish some depth!  Feel free to add in some fresh vegetables and toss together for an awesome pasta dish!

Ingredients:

1 lb. pork tenderloin, cut into thin medallions
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup peppercorns (black, pink, green, or combination), crushed
2 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup white wine
2 tablespoon champagne vinegar (I had an orange infused one lying around, so I used that)
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
salt and pepper, to taste
8 oz. spaghetti noodles, cooked

In a small bowl, combine the 2 teaspoons of salt and crushed peppercorns.  Lightly press both sides of each pork medallion into the mixture.

Heat olive oil in a large saute pan under medium high heat.  Add the pork medallions and cook until browned, about 2 minutes per side.

Remove the medallions from the pan and keep warm.  Deglaze the saute pan with the wine and vinegar.  Reduce until about 2 tablespoons remain.

Add the cream and reduce mixture to desired consistency, about 3-5 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve the pork over top the noodles and top with cream sauce.  Enjoy!

Hope you guys have a great weekend =)

Beer-Marinated Pork Tenderloin

How's everybody doing?  I can't believe it's already Friday!  This week just flew by! 

I've been grilling more than ever, and pork seems to be the protein we've been working with the most lately.  I haven't marinated anything in forever, so I thought this was the perfect opportunity to do so.  My fridge was pretty bare, but I managed to scrounge some essentials: beer, soy sauce, and ginger.  I also picked some jalapenos from my garden and threw those in there for a nice little kick.  Add some sugar for sweetness, and we're well on our way to flavor town!

Ingredients:

1 lb. pork tenderloin
1/2 cup soy sauce
12 oz. bottle of beer (I used a Falls City Pale Ale - one of our new favorite beers!)
1/4 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon molasses
1 & 1/2 T fresh ginger, grated
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced

Clean the tenderloin of any silverskin or excess fat. 

In a medium bowl, combine the soy sauce, beer, sugar, molasses, ginger, and jalapeno.  Stir until sugar is dissolved.

Place the tenderloin in a shallow pan (taller than the tenderloin) and cover with marinade.  Cover and place in refrigerator to marinate for at least 2 hours.

Preheat a grill to medium high heat.  Grill the tenderloin to desired doneness, about 2-3 minutes per side (assuming you turn it on all 4 sides and not just 2).

Let rest for 5 minutes before slicing.  Serve with fresh vegetables or side of your choice!  We were both too tired to go to the store, so we settled on a can of green bean we had in the pantry - so NOT the same as fresh vegetables!

This was definitely a tasty little meal!  Definitely something you could leave to marinate in the morning and just quickly grill off once you get home from work/school! 

Hope you all have a great week =)

Herbed Pork Noisettes w/ Red Wine Sauce

How was everyone's week?  Hope you're glad it's Friday, because I know I am!

It was sausage week at school and my group was tasked with making Andouille and Hot Italian Sausages.  They. Are. The. Bomb. Gonna have to start making sausage at home because it's way easier than I ever thought it would be!

Anyway, I've got a tasty pork tenderloin recipe for your guys today!

This is pretty simple and you could definitely play with the rub ingredients, but I happened to have tons of herbs from my garden, so I decided to use those and some simple salt and pepper!  No need to be fussy to be tasty, right?!  One of the guys in my class brought a bunch of tomatoes from his garden to give away to the class, so I put those to use in a simple and refreshing tomato and zucchini salad as a side.  After all these hot days, I'm trying to turn on the stove as little as possible so a cool side dish sounded perfect!

Ingredients:

1 lb. pork tenderloin
1 tablespoons fresh sage, minced
1 tablespoon fresh oregano, minced
1 tablespoon salt
1/2 tablespoon black pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil

Red Wine Sauce:

1/4 cup onion, minced
1 cup red wine
1 cup beef broth
1 tablespoon butter
salt and pepper, to taste

Trim the pork tenderloin of any undesirable fat..  You want to have a little to keep the loin moist, but not too much.

You'll probably want to make your sauce first since it will take longer than your pork.

In a medium saucepan, saute your onions under medium high heat in a little bit of olive oil.  Once the onions are slightly softened and translucent, add the red wine.  Reduce the mixture to a syrupy consistency, about 1/4 cup or so.  Add the beef broth and reduce again until about 1/2 cup remains.  Mount (stir in) the sauce with butter and season with salt and pepper to taste.  Keep warm until needed.

In a medium bowl, combine the sage, oregano, salt, and pepper.  Place the spice blend on a flat plate and spread evenly.  Place the loin on the plate and roll in the spice blend until fully coated.

Preheat oven to 450 F.

Heat a large oven-proof saute pan under medium high heat.  Add the olive oil and heat until shimmering.  Place the pork tenderloin in the pan and sear for about 3-5 minutes on each side (depending on the thickness of your cut).  Let the loin rest for about 5 minutes before slicing into noisettes (small portion of meat that originates from a rib about 3/4 inch thick).  Drizzle the red wine sauce over the slices and serve alongside a refreshing salad of vegetables or starchy side!

This is definitely another winner in our book!  If Andy's happy, I'm happy!   Hope you guys have a great rest of the week!

Secret Recipe Club: Beef & Pork Keema

It's Secret Recipe Club time again!  What is Secret Recipe Club?  Well, it's the coolest thing to hit the internet since Google originated, that's what!  It's basically a monthly "secret santa" among food bloggers.  You get assigned a food blogger, and you get to tackle one (or more!) of their recipes to post on reveal day (which is, of course, TODAY!)

I was really excited to be assigned Dana from Dana's Food For Thought.  Why?!  Well, Dana was assigned my blog for the first Secret Recipe Club that I participated in!  So it was so great to return the favor!

Dana's blog is full of amazing recipes, it was definitely hard to choose.  Recently engaged herself, Dana and I are very similar (as she said in her post when she was assigned my blog!).  She's got everything from Morel Mushroom and Brie Tart to Lime Chicken Empanadas with Ranchero Ranch Dressing!  Do I have your mouth watering yet?!

As I was perusing through Dana's blog, something really caught my eye - the Turkey Keema.  It had all of the Indian flavors that Andy and I both love, but still remained somewhat "normal" when in comes to "Americanized-Ethnic" food.  Andy was definitely surprised at how much he liked it - because looking at the ingredients, he was definitely weary... but I told him to trust me.  And I'm glad he did!  Because this was awesome - and I definitely will be taking Dana's suggestion of putting the filling into sandwiches, because I'm sure it'll be incredible!

Ingredients:
Adapted from Dana's Food For Thought's recipe

1 & 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
1/2 pound ground beef
1/2 lb. ground pork
2 & 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 & 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1 & 1/2 teaspoons salt
about 5 red potatoes, diced
6 oz plain Greek yogurt
3/4 cup 2% milk
3/4 cup frozen vegetables medley (peas, corn, carrots, green beans)
juice from 1 lemon
small handful cilantro, chopped

In a cast iron skillet, heat the oil over moderate heat. Add the onion and cook until starting to soften, about 3 minutes. Stir in the garlic and ginger and cook 1 minute longer. Add the ground beef and pork and cook until no longer pink, about 3 minutes.  Remove any extra fat.


Stir in the coriander, cumin, pepper, turmeric, cinnamon, and 1 teaspoon of the salt to the pan. Cook for about 1 minute. Stir in the potatoes, yogurt, and milk. Bring just to a boil. Cover the pan. Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Uncover the pan and simmer for 5 minutes longer.

Stir in the frozen vegetable medley and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Simmer until the vegetables are just done, about 2 minutes. Stir in the lemon juice and cilantro.  Serve with warm naan bread.


This was absolutely amazing.  It definitely exceeded every expectation and I can totally understand why Dana included it in her 7 Links Challenge as the 'Post That Didn't Get The Attention It Deserved'.

So I'm glad I got a chance to see why Dana thought this!  

I'm glad I got a chance at one of Dana's recipes, and I can't wait to experiment with others!  

If you want to join in on the fun of the Secret Recipe Club - feel free to check it out here!

Pork Stir-Fry

For the past couple of Sunday's, I've been experimenting with Food & Wine's May 2009 issue of stir fries. Stir Fries are definitely something that can be quick, tasty, and most importantly... versatile. You can put practically anything in a wok and call it a stir fry. Protein, vegetables, tasty sauce, and you have stir fry! The possibilities are endless.

So for today's recipe, I've got a really simple, but quite tasty Pork Stir-Fry.

Ingredients: (adapted from Food & Wine May 2009 - Pork-and-Tofu Stir Fry)

3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 lb. pork loin, cut into 1 & 1/2-by-1/4 inch strips
salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 cloves of garlic
large pinch of crushed red pepper
1 large leek, halved and cut into 1 inch pieces (the grocery was out of leeks, so I substituted an onion and did a rough chop)
1 cup chicken stock or low sodium broth
1/2 lb firm tofu cut into 1 in. cubes (I omitted the tofu)
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
2 teaspoons sherry vinegar (I used sherry wine instead, less acidity, but still a flavor boost)
1/2 teaspoon asian sesame oil

And although this seems hypocritical, because I'm pretty much the poster child for trying everything once and appreciating ALL foods, I just can't bring myself to love tofu. No, it's never even been close to my mouth or my lips, and frankly, I don't plan on it doing so. I know, I know, I should be the last person to turn something down without trying it first, but honestly, it gives me the heebie jeebies. And I'm cooking the meal and I can put what I want it. But if you like tofu, more power to you, and that's why I kept it in the list of ingredients!

And so after that derailment of a rant, on to the quick and easy preparation...

Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large skillet or wok. Add pork and cook until done, about 5 to 10 minutes, depending on how thick you cut your pork. I went a little meaty with my strips, but thinner strips would take less time. Transfer pork to a plate and set aside.

Add remainder of vegetable oil in skillet. Add garlic and red pepper to oil and heat for about 1 minute. This allows the oil to get a crisp garlic flavor and a little bit of heat from the pepper. Add leek (or onion, in my case), 1/4 cup of stock, and cover until leek or onion is cooked and soft, about 2-5 minutes.

Add remainder of stock and bring to simmer. Add tofu (we also contemplated substituting the tofu for chicken, but we had a ton of pork to begin with and didn't want to waste all that meat). Also add pork back in and stir in hoisin sauce, vinegar (or wine), and sesame oil.

And you're done! We served ours on a bed of brown rice and it was just the thing to soak up the extra sauce on the plate. It was tasty, easy, and great the next day for lunch! Enjoy!